Exercise, mortality, . . . and other stories

Benefits of physical activity

A couple of weeks ago, Minerva complained that, although studies showing physical exercise improved health outcomes were two a penny, most were small and their follow-up periods short. Here’s an exception, in which 400 000 adults who provided data on leisure time physical activity were tracked for around 12 years. Regular leisure time physical activity led to a 24% reduction in mortality in women and a 15% reduction in men. Men reached their maximal survival benefit from 300 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Women, on the other hand, needed to exercise for only half as long to achieve the same benefit (J Am Coll Cardiol doi: …